Chapter 15: You Better Get Ready To Die
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Zanpakutō"
"Hollows/Vizard"
"[Reading/listening to a message/letter]"
"{Speaking a different language}"
AN: The poll is officially closed. The first of the winners will be posted in December. Also, my Ao3 profile (same username) has a story with pictures I used as reference for this story.
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Morning, Three Hours Until Execution
Sitting in her cell, Nemu silently contemplated recent events. Not only was there Ichigo's declaration but she'd learned from the guards that her fa- that her creator was dead, slain by none other than Ichigo himself. On the one hand, Kurotsuchi Mayuri had been the sole constant in Nemu's life. He was cruel but he was there. And now, he wasn't. Oh sure, there was his backup brain that only the two of them knew about, but it was meant to prevent memory tampering or brainwashing, not death. There was no means for it to gain a new body unless someone made one for it. Unless she made one for it. On the other hand, Ichigo showed her more care and affection in an afternoon than Mayuri had shown her in over half a century. To Ichigo, she was a person, not a tool. Beloved, not bothersome.
In the end, perhaps what she was truly pondering wasn't her place without Mayuri, but her place with Ichigo. 'Ah, but he already answered that, did he not? I am his.' The thought brought a faint pink to Nemu's cheeks and a soft smile to her lips. It was… nice, that feeling of belonging. Eating a home cooked meal with the Kurosaki family, instructing Ichigo on proper Shinigami combat, …falling asleep in Ichigo's bed. In Ichigo's arms.
Glancing out her window, the violette noted the position of the sun. 'Approximately three more hours.'
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Two Hours Until Execution
"Let's go, Matsumoto."
"Hm?" Rangiku looked over at her captain curiously. He was even more serious than usual. "Isn't it a little early to be heading to the Sōkyoku?" The pair of them had spent much of the last few days with Momo whenever possible. The young lieutenant clearly needed companionship after her captain's brutal murder. Not that either of them would fault her. Rangiku still thought of her previous captain despite the man being missing and presumed dead for over two decades. And she knew Tōshirō was the same. No matter how much he tried to act like a serious and self-sufficient adult, he clearly missed his mentor as well.
The young prodigy looked back at her. "We're not going to the Sōkyoku. Something is rotten in Soul Society and we're going to root it out." That certainly got Rangiku's attention. Getting up off the couch, she became completely serious. Clearly, this was no time for boozing or lazing about. For his own part, Tōshirō was mildly annoyed that she couldn't be like this all the time. Maybe then she would actually get some work done without him having to encase her sake in a pillar of ice.
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"Ooooooh fuck!" Ichigo groaned as he awakened. He was stiff in places he barely realized he even had. What the hell did he do last night? After a moment, it all came back to him. 'Oh right. I fought my sword to the death. …My life is never gonna make sense again.' From within his mind, he heard Eien-ō's voice, "It was a well-earned victory, Your Majesty. Now, let us go retrieve your paramour." Okay, he was kind of curious why a piece of his soul talked like that but, questions for later.
"Bout time you woke up, boyo," Came Yoruichi's boisterous voice. "Much longer and I'd have had to do this whole thing myself!"
That certainly woke him up. "What time is it?! How long until the execution?!" If he'd missed the deadline because he'd overslept…
"About an hour, probably a little less," The werecat replied. She casually tossed him a wrapped package. "Eat something first. You'll need your strength." Catching the parcel, Ichigo unwrapped it to find something like a granola bar. With a shrug, he took a bite… and nearly threw up. Holy fuck, it was vile! "Yeah, I know. Tastes like a size ten boot with depression. Upside is, only one and you're set for the day. Science division whipped 'em up. And well, Mayuri's an asshole. Er, was an asshole, and didn't give a damn about things like taste so long as it was technically edible." With a shrug, she bit into her own nutrient bar, quickly scarfing the whole thing down before shuddering in disgust. "Not sure if the prick simply had no tastebuds or if he got off on the idea of making people eat these."
"Yech! Tastes like my grandma's manky box!" If nothing else, Candice's declaration proved two things. First, the bars really were that bad. Second, not even a universal language could translate everything. Looking at the Irishwoman, all four watched her furiously try to scrape her tongue. "Fuck me, that was vile! I'd kill for a pot of coffee right now, even that pussy stuff you drink, Bambi!"
"Fuck your caffeinated tar! Coffee shouldn't eat a hole in my mug!" The explosive Quincy barked back. And despite what the other three might think, that wasn't hyperbole. She had liked that mug, damnit!
Candice shrugged apathetically, "Pussy mug for pussy coffee. Can't handle a real brew. Besides, be glad I didn't have you drink it the way gramps always did back in the day."
Watching from the sidelines, Tatsuki knew she shouldn't, but she couldn't help but take the bait. "How did he drink it?"
The verdette smirked in response, "Anally." At Tatsuki's alarmed look, she laughed. "I'm not kidding. Your body absorbs the caffeine faster through the mucus membrane in your rectum. Gets you fucked up right now. Gramps said they used it to treat shock."
"I'm pretty damn sure getting hot coffee up your ass causes shock, not cures it!"
"She means the medical condition," Ichigo offered, "It's when you don't have enough blood flowing to your tissues. Most types can be at least managed with proper intake of fluids, hemorrhagic shock in particular, which would be common on a battlefield." When everyone looked questioningly at Ichigo, he defensively said, "What? My old man's a doctor."
"Huh." Came Candice's eloquent reply. "Learn something every day. I thought they just didn't have time to fuck around." Idly running a hand through her hair, she paused and frowned. After another pass, her frown worsened. Before anyone could ask what she was doing, she shouted, "Goddamnit! I haven't brushed my hair in a fucking week! Look at this mess!"
As the verdette ranted about her hair, Ichigo sighed before asking Yoruichi, "Can you get me some string or something?" Yoruichi quirked an eyebrow but disappeared in the blink of an eye, only to reappear a few seconds later, a short length of red string in her hands. "Thanks," The young man said before turning to the still ranting Quincy. "Oi, come over here a second. I can help."
Candice stopped her tirade to give him a look of mild suspicion. After a moment's thought, she decided to give him a shot. "If you fuck my hair up, I'm fucking your balls up! This shit is my pride and joy!" Despite her words, she still turned her back on Ichigo at his direction. Quickly but gently running his fingers through Candice's hair, Ichigo carefully swept her hair from her forehead towards the back of her head. Once there, he separated it into three sections and crossed first the right then the left sections over the middle. Moving all three sections to his left hand, he kept them separate as he took another section of hair for the right side of her head and joined it with the right-hand strand. And so he went, quickly and efficiently braiding Candice's long green locks together. Once all her hair had been gathered, he braided the rest together as a basic three strand braid. As he reached the end, Ichigo just as skillfully tied it off with the length of string Yoruichi gave him.
After a moment, Candice felt her hair tentatively. When nothing felt immediately horrible, she ran over to the hot spring to check her reflection in the water. Twisting her head this way and that, she carefully inspected her new French braid. "Well shit. I thought you were going to do something lame like pigtails or a ponytail. This is pretty nice. Where'd you learn to do this?"
Ichigo shrugged dismissively, "It's part of being a big brother. Until they cut it short, I used to style my little sisters' hair all the time." Honestly, the braid wasn't anything special in his mind. But with only a short time to work and not even a bobby pin (Could Yoruichi have gotten him some?), this was what he could do.
"Great body, going to war for a girl, and you can do hair? If you're not careful, you're gonna get your balls sucked." Candice 'warned' him.
While Ichigo mimicked his namesake, Yoruichi spoke up, "As fun as this is, and it is pretty funny, we don't have a lot of time. The execution's in a little less than two hours and we need to be ready. So here's what we're gonna do…"
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One Hour Until Execution
Isane sat quietly in her cell. There wasn't a clock or window handy but she assumed the execution must be drawing near. 'I can't believe Captain Unohana is going through with this… travesty!' Yes, Isane's attempt had failed and she would certainly be executed as well, but at least she had tried. Nobody else had done a damn thing! 'I can regret that I failed. But I refuse to regret what I did.' Admittedly, that wasn't much comfort. But it was the only one she had. She couldn't even escape if she tried. Upon her arrest, the silver haired lieutenant had been placed in one of the higher security cells, one with a significant amount of Sekkiseki within the walls.
Isane was distracted from her thoughts by the arrival of her captain. For once, her normal timidity and affection for the older woman were drowned out by bitterness. "Did you need something, Captain?" Had Captain Unohana helped, she was sure her rescue attempt would have been successful. But instead, she had toed the party line.
Unohana gave a tired sigh before answering, "I said you shouldn't have acted rashly." She made a movement that resembled nothing so much as a few brief flashes of light to Isane's eyes. At first, nothing happened, but then there came a great groan behind the lieutenant. Turning her head, she bore witness to a section of the back wall falling out, leaving behind a large roughly triangular hole. Her disbelieving eyes whipped back to her captain. "I hadn't yet finished my investigation before you ran off. Captain Hitsugaya and Lieutenant Matsumoto are headed to the Central 46 compound. You'll need to hurry if you're to catch up." Isane didn't ask how she knew that. Given how restoring a patient's Reiatsu was the first step of Kaidō, healing lieutenants and captains was almost exclusively the domain of Captain Unohana, leaving her with an intimate familiarity with the officers' Reiatsu.
Isane quickly moved to escape her cell, only for her (wonderful, amazing, how could she have doubted her) captain's voice to stop her. "Isane-chan? Don't forget this." She passed Isane's Zanpakutō through the bars and warned her, "The mastermind of this whole affair might be lurking in that compound. Do be more careful this time." Isane nodded with a smile and fled via Shunpo.
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Nanao waited impatiently for her captain outside the Shihōin estate. She didn't know what exactly he was up to, but he had insisted he go in alone. With the start of the execution drawing near, she was getting antsy. 'Whatever you're planning on doing, you had best hurry. We're nearly out of time.' If Nanao was perfectly honest with herself, she knew that she was unlikely to be of much, if any, help during Shunsui's plan. But she meant it when she said she'd always be right behind him. While her feelings for him were… complicated, at best, she'd never abandon her uncle.
She was drawn from her thoughts by the gate opening. Out stepped her captain/uncle/mentor/undefined, carrying what appeared to be a large wooden shield with the Shihōin crest stamped on the front and a blue cord wrapped around the top which connected to a long pole in his other hand. "That went better than expected," He laughed. "When Yūshirō-kun learned what I wanted, he nearly threw the thing at me." Much more quietly, he added, "And it seems he has an idea of what's going on. He asked me to send his sister his regards and to ask her to visit before she leaves again."
"C-captain, what is that?" The young lieutenant asked curiously.
"This, Nanao-chan, is exactly what I needed… to make things right," Was his mysterious answer.
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Ten Minutes Until Execution
The relative peace and quiet of the communal cell were shattered with the same explosion as the back wall. "Rise and shine, bitches!" A loud boisterous voice called. From the gaping hole that used to be a wall appeared Bambietta and Candice, both now wearing Shihakusho. "No really," The German woman said, "Hurry up. We're working on a schedule tighter than Uryū's asshole so we gotta move!" Looking at each other, and ignoring Uryū's indignant shout, all four quickly ran out of their prison to freedom. The Quincy women quickly took off as well, leading them away.
As they ran, Sado asked, "Where's Ichigo and Tatsuki?" He didn't see either of them around, nor could he sense them. The giant teen wasn't sure where Yoruichi was either, but as the cat was stronger than any of them and apparently hadn't been found since they arrived in Seireitei, Sado figured he was probably fine.
"They're off saving his girlfriend. We're supposed to rendezvous with them elsewhere then make our escape," Candice answered.
Noticing the verdette's braid bouncing as they all ran, Orihime spoke up, "I love your hair. It looks really nice braided."
Candice got an awkward look on her face at the compliment. She really wasn't used to having her hair tied up or bound in anyway, always letting it flow freely. "Thanks. Ichigo did it for me."
"Kurosaki-kun can style hair?" The busty teenager asked in surprise. But after a moment, she nodded certainly. "Oh, of course he can. He's a big brother." She remembered her own brother Sora doing similar for her growing up. He wasn't very good at it initially, but he took the time to learn. Even when he was exhausted from work, he was always doing things like that to help her.
Unfortunately, their escape was halted by a massive form appearing before them all. "Stop right there, Ryoka." Before them, standing nearly three meters tall, was Komamura Sajin. The armored captain stared them all down through his helmet.
"Well shit," Was Bambietta's eloquent response.
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Five Minutes Until Execution
The various captains and lieutenants had assembled, though less than half of each were actually present, Yamamoto noted. Only the First, Second, and Thirteenth Divisions had both of their top officers present, though Ukitake brought his two 3rd Seats, not having a lieutenant currently. Captain Unohana's lieutenant was of course still imprisoned, awaiting her punishment. Meanwhile, Lieutenants Hinamori, Abarai, Iba, and Kira were all without their captains. The last example made Yamamoto curious. Captains Kuchiki and Aizen being absent was to be expected; the former was still badly injured and the latter dead. Meanwhile, Captain Komamura was dealing with the remaining Ryoka according to his lieutenant. But Captain Ichimaru had no reason not to be present. Similarly, the absence of Captain Hitsugaya and Lieutenant Matsumoto was suspicious as well. On the other hand, the truancy of the 11th Division was almost expected. Their captain and lieutenant were an almost literal case of the blind leading the blind.
With perfect punctuality, the guards transporting the condemned arrived. As the various officers took their customary places, Yamamoto addressed the former lieutenant, "Kurotsuchi Nemu. You have been found guilty of dereliction of duty, abandoning your post, and illegally transferring your powers to a human. You have been sentenced to execution by Sōkyoku. Have you any final words or requests before your sentence is carried out?"
The Head Captain would give the young woman credit: she didn't plead for mercy or futilely try to escape. Instead, she looked straight ahead with a calm expression and answered, "No. Such things are meaningless."
While Yamamoto personally disagreed with such sentiments, he would respect them nonetheless. "Very well. Proceed with the execution!" At his order, the Kidō Corps members unsealed the Sōkyoku as the prisoner was raised into the air to hover before the scaffold.
Nemu stared toward the Sōkyoku without fear as the ropes sealing it fell away as it levitated upwards. Even as the halberd was engulfed in flames and transformed into a titanic phoenix, the Kikōō, her expression did not waver. 'Yes, such things are absolutely meaningless because…' The violette thought. The firebird let out a piercing cry and flapped its immense wings once, blowing a gust of sweltering air forwards. Yet Nemu barely blinked. As the phoenix suddenly flew forward at alarming speeds, she showed not an ounce of fear.
There was a thunderous clang! "Oi, Nemu." Less than two meters away stood Ichigo clad in a new Shihakusho with a tan cloak around his shoulders, negligently holding back the offensive power of a million Zanpakutō. On his face was a confident grin as he stared down at her. 'Because my life is not theirs to take. It belongs to Ichigo-sama.'
Down below, the gathered Shinigami stared in various states of shock. The three eldest captains each only showed slight surprise, though their shock was more at the Substitute Shinigami's growth rate than his actual power. Soifon's mouth was agape at some random criminal holding back the Sōkyoku as though it were an unruly child. The lieutenants and 3rd Seats proved to be far more vocal than their superiors, however. "How could some lowborn commoner be so strong?" The obese Ōmaeda squawked.
Renji stood in awe and disbelief of his former opponent's sheer power. "We fought less than a week ago! Where did he get this much power?!"
"INCONCEIVABLE! NO ONE COULD POSSIBLY STOP THE SŌKYOKU!" The dark blonde Kiyone and goateed Sentarō shouted in unison.
The mighty Kikōō backed away and shouted its displeasure at being bested. Turning away from Nemu, Ichigo took up a ready stance, prepared to face it for real this time. "You really wanna try your luck a second time? Bring it on then!" With another piercing cry, the phoenix swooped towards them!
But shortly before impact, a rope curled around its beak, halting the giant firebird. At the end of the rope was a black metallic rod which shot towards the ground. Down below, everyone stared in shock at the one who caused such a thing. All except one person. Ukitake Jūshirō immediately joined his longtime friend, Shunsui, placing his hand upon the rod embedded in the ground. With a start, Soifon recognized the crest stamped on the shield in Shunsui's hand. Hurriedly, she roared at the lieutenants, "Stop them, you fools! They're going to destroy the Sōkyoku!"
But it was too late. Sliding their swords into the shield's slots, the two captains sent a pulse of energy up into the monstrous firebird. Like a match in a typhoon, the flames went out, leaving behind nothing but the colossal halberd, now snapped in two! Up above, Ichigo alighted upon the scaffold. Twirling Eien-ō into position, he released his Shikai without a word before slamming it down into the scaffold! A wave of energy burst from the point of contact, obliterating the wooden beams in an explosion of light!
When the light cleared, Ichigo was leaning Eien-ō against his shoulder with one arm while the other was wrapped around Nemu, holding her steady against him. At that very moment, another newcomer appeared on the execution grounds. Already in her full transformation, the draconic teen called out to her partner in crime, "Oi! Ichigo! Let's go already!"
Staring down at all the forces arrayed against them, Ichigo had a different idea. Instead, he adjusted his grip, lifting Nemu up by her sash. "Ichigo-sama, what are you-"
Down below, Tatsuki caught on quicker than the lieutenant did. "Oh, don't you fucking dare…" But he dared. With a mighty heave, Ichigo threw Nemu the hundreds of meters separating them! While Tatsuki might have been able to brace herself and catch the other woman, Ichigo's aim was sadly a little high. Leaping into the air, Tatsuki did indeed safely catch Nemu in her arms, only for the impact to send them both hurtling backwards, skidding along the ground as they went. Leaping to her feet, the tomboy roared at him like the dragon she resembled, "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT, ICHIGO?! WERE YOU TRYING TO KILL US BOTH?!"
Ichigo appeared in a burst of Shunpo directly in front of the two, though facing their assembled enemies. Ignoring Tatsuki's indignant question of why he didn't do that in the first place, he said, "Get outta here. I'll cover you two long enough to make your escape. Now go!"
Tatsuki nodded tersely, picked up Nemu, and turned to run. Before she did, Nemu called out, "Ichigo-sama!" He turned to look at her. At the woman he'd waged war against an entire world for. The violette's gaze was unyielding as she told him, "You're not allowed to die here either."
Ichigo blinked in surprise at her adamant declaration before his face settled into a grin. "Like I'd die here." The two young women sped off, one carrying the other in her arms. Looking forward once more, Ichigo saw all six lieutenants bearing down on him. "Six on one, huh? That hardly seems fair!" He cockily stated. Removing Eien-ō from his shoulder, the teen stabbed his Zanpakutō into the ground. "Maybe if I fight barehanded, it'll even things up."
Incredulous but unwilling to not take advantage of such arrogance, the lieutenants all released their Shikai as they charged the invader. Or rather, five of them did. As Ichigo drove his fist through Ōmaeda's flail and into his gut, Momo Shunpo'd in front of her old classmate Izuru and placed a hand in front of his head. "Bakudō #15, Inemuri!" Izuru's eyes barely had time to widen in surprise at her betrayal before the Kidō took hold. His pupils dilated repeatedly until his eyes glazed over and he fell unconscious. Momo quickly turned to help the Ryoka against the remaining lieutenants, only to gape in awe as he knocked out Lieutenant Sasakibe with a single blow. An instant later, in a move she couldn't even follow, Lieutenant Iba was picked and bodily slammed into Renji like a bludgeon, knocking both to the ground and rendering both unconscious.
Momo could scarcely believe her eyes as the Ryoka turned to look at her questioningly. But then his eyes widened in alarm just as her ribs screamed in agony! A foot buried itself in her side as she was kicked several meters away! As she landed facedown, that same foot stomped down on her back! "You traitorous dog! Did you think you would get away with acting against the Gotei 13?!" Soifon lifted her leg once more, this time to stomp on the girl's neck and end her life. But before she could, an orange and black blur struck her at incredible speed and tackled her off the cliff! Though the person in question had their face covered in wrappings, Soifon would know those eyes anywhere. "You! Yoruichi!"
The werecat in question smiled as she removed her facial coverings. "Long time, no see, Soifon. Did you like that art display I put up the other day?"
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At the same time, Jūshirō and Shunsui "fled" the area, their old mentor Yamamoto swiftly following after them. So swiftly in fact, that he arrived at their chosen battleground before they did. A few seconds after the three captains arrived, Nanao joined them, panting for breath. She was reasonably proficient in Shunpo, but keeping up with captains was a tall order, a near impossible one when talking about these three in particular.
The bespectacled lieutenant stared at the Head Captain as he faced down his two wayward students. Cautiously, trying to avoid drawing attention to herself, Nanao reached towards the tanto tucked into her Shihakusho. 'This is the Head Captain. The only one Soul Society has ever had. Even with two captains, we might not be able to win. It's a long shot, but I might be able to-' Her thoughts were cut off as an unfathomable amount of power crashed down onto her. She was instantly crushed to the ground, unable to move. Unable to even breathe. It was like being trapped at the bottom of the ocean. The immeasurable weight compressing you into nothingness as you struggle blind and deaf to survive. In vain.
An instant later, the weight lessened. It was still present, but now the pressure was more akin to having someone heavier laying atop your body, rather than an entire mountain range crushing every fiber of your existence. "Take it easy, Nanao-chan," Came the reassuring voice of her captain, "You've done enough. We'll handle it from here." After he vanished, Nanao finally sat up, still struggling to regain her breath. With a grimace of distaste, she wiped away the foam and tears from her face. Looking around, the young woman realized she was several miles away from where she had just been. She wasn't even on the same side of Sōkyoku Hill! '"Might not be able to win?" What a joke! We don't stand a fucking chance!' Even in the privacy of her own thoughts, this was the first time in her life Nanao had ever sworn.
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Back up on Sōkyoku Hill, Captain Unohana stared down at the young man who had just incapacitated four lieutenants with laughable ease. He watched her warily, though not quite hostilely. It was understandable, she supposed. She was a captain, but she also had yet to act against him. Putting him aside for the moment, the matronly captain approached the unconscious Kira. With a snap of her fingers and a certain application of her Reiryoku, the blonde man instantly awoke. He was alert though vaguely confused for a moment. "Huh, what happ- Momo! She betrayed us!"
"That's unimportant right now," Unohana insisted. Turning towards Kiyone and Sentarō, the two 3rd Seats still frozen in light of what they saw, she ordered, "The three of you take the other lieutenants to the 4th Division Barracks for healing." Kira opened his mouth to protest, Unohana cut him off without even looking at him, "You have your orders. See to your comrades." The three nodded and quickly sped off, carrying the five unconscious lieutenants between them.
Once she was alone with the Substitute, Captain Unohana returned her attention to him. He was still guarded, but less so than he had been. "Thank you for not interrupting while I saw to my subordinates. It's rather nice to see a young man with manners."
Warily, Ichigo responded, "I don't have any quarrel with you. If you let me and my friends leave with Nemu, that'll be the end of it. I was willing to start a war, but I never wanted to."
Captain Unohana nodded serenely. "That is understandable. But nonetheless, you did start this war. Not only that, but you are the one who killed Captain Kurotsuchi, are you not?" As she spoke, the ravenette removed her captain's haori. With a quick declaration of, "Shitotsu Sansen", a trio of triangles made of yellow Reishi pinned said haori to the ground.
"I am," Ichigo confirmed, wondering where she was going with this. He was telling the truth before. He didn't want to fight her or anyone else in Soul Society. If they left him and his alone, he'd return the favor. But he doubted it'd be that easy. "He was a bastard and deserved everything he got."
"Of that, I have no doubt. Captain Kurotsuchi was always a rather loathsome man, albeit an extremely useful one. It's likely why he was allowed to survive as long as he had." Drawing her Zanpakutō, Unohana asked, "There's just one more thing. What is your name?"
Ichigo brought Eien-ō up to a guard position, ready for anything this woman might try. "Kurosaki Ichigo. Didn't your reports already include that?"
"Oh, they did. But I wished to make certain we were not mistaken. You see, I believe that one should always know the name of their killer." Ichigo couldn't describe exactly how, but without changing expression, the woman before him changed. Her smile was no longer soothing, but sinister and something dark gleamed in her eyes. With her offhand, the suddenly much less motherly captain reached up and removed the binding on her braid. Her hair quickly unraveled in the light wind, displaying a scar between her clavicles. "For that reason, my name is Unohana Yachiru."
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The fight wasn't going terribly well for Captain Komamura. While he had yet to take any significant damage, he was also unaccustomed to fighting multiple skilled enemies, even if they were considerably weaker than him. It could be argued that he favored straightforward power too much. In fact, if not for his attitude, he'd be rather welcome in the 11th Division. After yet another arrow stuck him while the dark-skinned human clashed with him in melee, the giant captain decided he had had enough. With a mighty swing of his Zanpakutō, one mirrored by his Shikai, he drove back his opponents. Raising his Zanpakutō above his head, Komamura yelled, "Bankai!"
From behind Komamura, on a lower level of the Seireitei than they were fighting on, grew an immense suit of armor that resembled a samurai of titanic proportions! Standing roughly a hundred meters tall, the golem wore grey armor and wielded a scimitar larger than all of them combined. It was Ganju of all people who summed up their reactions best, "WHAT IN THE ABSOLUTE HELL?!"
"Kokujō Tengen Myō'ō," The armored captain intoned. "You should have surrendered while you had the chance, Ryoka." With a roar, he swung his Zanpakutō downwards. The giant mimicked his movement, its colossal blade forcing the group to scatter or be crushed beneath it.
As the closest combatant, Sado only barely managed to get out of the way of the attack, tumbling forwards as the shockwave from the impact struck him. Standing back up, the protrusions on his Brazo Derecho del Gigante opened, charging with his Reiryoku. Pulling back his fist, he declared, "El Directo!" The blast of power soared true and struck the giant directly in the face, causing an explosion that engulfed its head entirely! The others whooped in joy at his successful attack, only for their jaws to drop as the smoke cleared and the giant was completely unharmed.
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Immediately after her introduction, Yachiru was in Ichigo's face, her sword slicing through the air to cleave him in twain! Ichigo barely managed to bring Eien-ō up to block in time. Even more than her speed, he was shocked by her raw strength. Despite being almost a full head shorter than him, she was almost overwhelming him while wielding her Zanpakutō with only one hand. 'Wait, one hand?' Ichigo barely had time to realize his enemy had a free hand available before a dagger lodged itself in his throat! Stumbling backwards, he clutched his throat desperately as his lifeblood poured out from around the blade. 'This can't be how it ends! I can't die here!' Yachiru appeared directly before him again, knocking aside his clumsy attempt to ward her off. In an instant, she ripped the dagger from his throat and slammed her palm over the wound. Almost instantly, Ichigo found himself able to breathe again. When she removed her hand, he hesitantly poked his throat, finding no trace of his injury barring the blood staining his front. "Perhaps I expected too much from your Shikai, Kurosaki-kun," Her smile had dimmed, like a child whose new toy had broken already. "You're far stronger than you were against Captain Kurotsuchi, but I fear it won't be enough for me to enjoy myself. So I must insist: if you have Bankai, unleash it immediately."
Ichigo felt himself take a step away from the woman in front of him. 'How?! She's the same rank as Mayuri was! How is she so much stronger?! Is such power truly possible?!' Before he could work himself up too much, a comforting pulse thrummed from Eien-ō. 'Right, how foolish of me. You've got my back, right partner?' Eien-ō pulsed again, this time giving off a feeling of agreement. Shaking his head slightly, as though ridding himself of his negativity, Ichigo faced Yachiru once more. "Right, sorry about that. You wanted to see my Bankai? Hope you won't regret that!" The teen pointed his sword straight at her, shoulder level and with the flat of his Zanpakutō facing the ground. "Bankai!"
An explosion of golden Reiatsu kicked up every pebble and spec of dirt atop Sōkyoku Hill, hiding both combatants from sight! Ichigo's power skyrocketed as he revealed the true form of his Zanpakutō. Yachiru watched and waited, eagerly anticipating her opponent's might. As the dust began to settle, she licked her lips of the blood that had splattered her face during her little "lesson". With a pulse of Reiatsu, Ichigo blew away all of the smoke and dirt at once. When the bloodthirsty swordswoman got her first look at Kurosaki's Bankai, she found herself rather surprised. In her (vast) experience, most Bankai either affected only the Zanpakutō or manifested as a large effect of some sort. Ichigo stood before her, clad in a suit of vaguely European armor. Solid steel with gold highlights, the armor was impressively ornate. Coming down from the upper portion of the chestplate was a rich blue tabard that covered his stomach and groin. Strapped to his left arm was a large kite shield with a stylized golden lion head on its front, while his right hand held a silvery greatsword with a fleur-de-lis on the crossguard. Curiously, despite the teen wielding it in one hand, the braided handle showed it was clearly a two handed blade. Finally, atop the teen's head was a helmet designed to look like a snarling animal of some sort, though the white mane of hair atop the helm gave the impression of a lion. From within the helmet, Ichigo's voice echoed, "Eien-ō Tenmai."
"Oh my, that's quite the intimidating Bankai you have there, Kurosaki-kun." Far from intimidated, the first Kenpachi sounded almost hungry. Her bloodthirsty smile was back in place and she appeared to be almost twitching in anticipation. "Now, we can truly enjoy ourselves!" In a burst of speed, she rushed forwards, her Zanpakutō aimed to slice right through his thigh! A loud clang rang through the air as his shield blocked her strike! At the same time, Ichigo's own sword swung towards his enemy, seeking to hew off her left arm at the shoulder! Yachiru evaded by leaping backwards, Ichigo's blade only managing a shallow cut on her shoulder. The captain lightly placed a hand on her injury. Pulling it away to see her hand slathered in blood, her grin grew even further. "Oh yes. That's much better, Kurosaki-kun."
While her attention was diverted, Ichigo charged her this time. Golden Reiatsu shone from his Zanpakutō's blade like a beacon. At the last second, Yachiru brought up her sword, blocking his from cutting open her throat, her own blade glowed with her crimson Reiatsu. Bracing his shield against his sword, the young man declared, "Tenka-Ichiken!" A golden wave of power shot out of Eien-ō Tenmai's blade, slamming into Yachiru's upper body and blasting her away! Refusing to give her time to recover, Ichigo quickly tracked her fall and launched another Tenka-Ichiken towards where she would land then dashed after her. But before he even arrived, the golden blast was deflected. Yachiru stood tall and proud, her Shihakusho singed and her face bloody, but she wielded her Zanpakutō in both hands with no signs of exhaustion or pain.
This time when Ichigo blocked her strike, her blade carved a noticeable groove into his shield before becoming stuck. Knowing he was too close to swing his own Zanpakutō, Ichigo instead punched her in the face with his gauntleted hand. Though her nose broke, she didn't waver in the slightest. Instead, she put more power behind her Zanpakutō and adjusted her grip, causing her sword to slice deeper into his shield! Realizing the dangerous position he was in, Ichigo punched Yachiru in the throat. When she reflexively grabbed her neck, he jerked his shield to the side, forcing the captain to either pull her Zanpakutō free or lose it entirely. Leaping backwards a short distance, he admitted, "I can see why you haven't released your Zanpakutō yet. Your strength is ridiculous."
Her hand coming away from her throat, the ravenette corrected him, "Not at all. My Shikai has little combat ability and I'm afraid you have yet to earn my Bankai. Why, I haven't even lost a limb yet."
Ichigo's helmet tilted to the side slightly. "Is that right? Let's fix that, shall we? Yūrei no Heishi!" Five duplicates of his armored form appeared around the slaughterous woman. The only visible difference from the original was that their shields were still pristine. All six armored figures took up a ready stance, prepared to once more cross blades with the captain.
After everything he'd seen from the woman, he honestly wasn't surprised when Yachiru appeared to shiver in pleasure at his threat. "Oh~ threaten me with a good time."
All six charged at once, shields held before them to block any possible attacks as they swung their swords at her. She wasn't surprised when the six phased through each other, remembering such from Kuchiki-san's report. But what did impress her was how well the sextet worked together. Kuchiki-san's report suggested the Ryoka had difficulty controlling more than one or two duplicates at a time, yet the six golems she faced now worked together flawlessly. Each one sought to either take advantage of an opening or create one for the others. It was a whirlwind of steel and death. And yet she danced between the swords all the same. Yachiru was forced to take a hand off her Zanpakutō so she could utilize one of her daggers as well, but she was truly enjoying herself for the first time in far too long. The boy and his doppelgangers were no slouches, smart enough to strike with their shields or any part of their bodies as well.
But as the fight went on, it became apparent to Yachiru that the golems weren't quite up to par with her true opponent. This was especially apparent when she struck one's arm and cleaved the entire limb off, which also showed the armor itself was completely empty inside. Though it quickly compensated for lacking a sword arm, the rhythm was nonetheless disrupted. Allowing one to slice her stomach, the first Kenpachi cleaved it in two vertically with her Zanpakutō even as she beheaded another behind her with a dagger. However, she quickly learned the decapitated armor wasn't "dead" yet as its sword stabbed through her back and out her chest! A third (the real one, she noted, if the scarred shield was any indication) cut off her left arm just below the elbow! Her smile near rapturous, Yachiru pointed the index finger of her remaining hand skyward and declared, "Hadō #90, Kurohitsugi!"
Ichigo and his golems Shunpo'd away from the woman as a black box enveloped her, though two failed to avoid the attack: the one impaling her and another who stumbled slightly. All three were engulfed by void of energy as several spear-like protrusions pierced it from every direction. Mere moments later, the box vanished, leaving only two destroyed golems and a single heavily bleeding Yachiru. "That crazy bitch," Ichigo muttered in both awe and horror. He couldn't imagine someone unleashing such a powerful attack on themselves in an attempt to kill their enemy. The woman was covered in injuries, her robes were falling apart, and he was pretty sure more of her blood was on the ground than in her body. The Substitute could scarcely believe she was still standing. Raising his voice, he asked, almost pleaded really, "Just surrender already! You're one foot in the grave after that last attack! I already told you we didn't have to fight!"
With seemingly renewed vigor, Yachiru ignored her wounds as she stood tall and parroted his words back at him. "'Don't have to fight'? Don't be ridiculous, Kurosaki-kun. OF COURSE WE HAVE TO FIGHT! When one great warrior meets another, they must seek to either kill them or nurture them! Who cares if I'm half dead; that's when the battle truly begins!" Taking a deep breath, she almost seemed to collect herself before calmly stating, "Bankai." From her Zanpakutō came a deluge of blood, forming a pool on the ground. The pool rose up as a wave, washing over the entire area, and when it passed, Yachiru's body was whole and hearty once more. Even her severed arm had regenerated. In her right hand was a katana, shorter than her sealed Zanpakutō and seemingly made of solidified blood. "Minazuki."
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In a sizable clearing in the forest at the base of Sōkyoku Hill, two femme fatales faced off against one another. Both wore near identical outfits, even wearing matching black tops that lacked both backs and shoulders. The shorter of the two, Captain Soifon, panted as she glared at her former mentor, Shihōin Yoruichi. Despite her century of training for this day, the woman she had admired for so long seemed almost as untouchable as ever. Even Soifon's best efforts had only left a single Hōmonka on Yoruichi's form, one across her stomach from when the petite captain had first released her Shikai.
And now, she had brought out her trump card, an incredibly potent combination of Kidō and Hakuda. The technique was so new that she hadn't even named it yet! And yet… even that wasn't her own accomplishment it seemed. Not only did Yoruichi already know it, she had invented it before Soifon had even become a Shinigami! Worst of all, the older woman claimed she "wasn't ready for it yet". Wasn't ready yet! As though Soifon were still her student and had been caught trying out advanced techniques! Even as her teal Reiatsu swirled around her, she roared at her former idol, "How?! How are you still so much stronger?! I've spent a hundred years training myself to the bone while you hid in exile! I should have surpassed you!"
Yoruichi sighed, her own pale-yellow Reiatsu crackling from the effects of Shunkō. She wasn't surprised by her student's hang-ups. The girl had basically worshiped her as a goddess once upon a time. With a comforting smile on her face, she told the young woman, "You have grown strong, little bee, likely stronger than I was back when I was still captain. You even figured out the basics of Shunkō on your own. You have no idea how proud I am of you. However," Yoruichi's face grew more serious, "You made two critical mistakes. The first was spending so long mastering a fighting style I designed for myself. The second…" A circle of lightning formed behind her back, shaped to resemble Raijin's drums. Her power massively spiked as her bangs rose up to resemble horns.
Suddenly, in a movement Soifon couldn't even register, Yoruichi's knee buried itself deep in her gut. The blow folded her in half for all of a moment before she was launched away from her mentor! Her back struck one of the trees at the edge of the clearing but the trunk failed to arrest her momentum in the slightest. Her body broke straight through it as well as the next tree and the next. By the time she tumbled to a stop, Yoruichi was already standing over her downed form, one foot firmly pinning Suzumebachi to the ground. "The second was assuming I spent the last century sitting on my perfect chocolate ass."
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"Good news, the giant is pretty slow. Bad news, it's also really fucking durable!" Candice panted in exhaustion. Nothing they had done had caused more than minor damage. And while they did learn that hurting the giant hurt the captain, that didn't matter when fighting the massive suit of armor was like fighting a mountain. Upside, while the damned thing had outright ignored Orihime's attacks, her other abilities were invaluable. None of them had more than minor bruises and cuts.
Suddenly, Uryū spoke up. For rather obvious reasons, he had stayed away from the fight so far, but he had been analyzing things, looking for a weakness the others could exploit. "Everyone, I have an idea. Ganju, what kind of range does your Seppa have?"
For his part, Komamura was getting tired both literally and figuratively. Maintaining Bankai for as long as he had was draining, even if he hadn't fought terribly hard. On the other hand, actually harming these Ryoka had proven surprisingly difficult. Two of them were fast enough to dodge his attacks while a third was close. But the real problem was the orange haired girl. Her shields never failed to halt his attacks, even when they shattered afterwards. And any strike that did land was almost immediately healed away. The last two, Komamura basically ignored. He knew the Quincy with glasses had lost his powers and the one identified as Shiba Ganju wasn't capable of harming him with his fireworks. 'And really, who fights with fireworks of all things?' Fortunately, the older captains confirmed that the Quincy needed a special glove to use the technique that nearly killed Captain Kuchiki, something the two active ones apparently lacked.
The largest Ryoka charged him once more, something that had been a standard for most of the battle. The young man was clearly the most durable and physically strongest of the group. Komamura caught the Ryoka's armored fist with his own while using his Bankai to ward off the Quincy women, something he admitted probably looked rather silly from an outside perspective. The third girl attempted to attack him once more, only for her projectile to be easily smacked aside. The armored captain heard the Shiba shout, "Renkan Seppa Sen!" He almost dismissed it, but then the ground beneath his feet suddenly tilted backwards as sand erupted all around him!
Even as the ground gave way and threatened to dump him tens of meters below on the same level as his Bankai, Komamura was only mildly concerned. All he had to do was- His thoughts were interrupted by a bullet striking him near the bottom of his helmet, a similarly inconsequential thing, if not for his helmet promptly exploding while still on his head. Dazed, bleeding, and mostly deaf, he didn't hear the dark-haired Quincy woman boast, "Howitzer Shot, bitch." Though he did feel the blast from the larger Ryoka strike him as he tumbled backwards. Just before he lost consciousness, Komamura threw his sword towards the Ryoka, causing his falling, damaged Bankai to do the same.
"Holy shit, you guys! I can't believe that actually worked!" Ganju roared in triumph. No one would ever be able to talk shit about him again; he had taken down a Shinigami captain! Okay, he had help, but still! So caught up in his celebration was he that Ganju didn't notice the titanic sword hurtling towards him. It wasn't until the shadow had covered him that he realized something was amiss. Looking up and seeing the sword mere centimeters away paralyzed the young noble. Fortunately, someone else wasn't so frozen. Sado tackled him away, the blade only leaving a shallow slice on his back as he saved his comrade! Once the dust cleared, Ganju stared in shock at the weapon that almost killed him after the fight was over. As the sword dissipated, its owner unable to sustain it while unconscious, he looked at Sado and promised, "I'm buying you all the liquor you want for that, big guy."
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The unleashing of Yachiru's Bankai had left the fighters standing in a pool of blood that covered almost the entirety of Sōkyoku Hill. Had Ichigo cared to look, he'd have noticed that the blood went all the way to the edges of the cliff, yet never flowed over. Instead, he only had eyes for his enemy. Three of his soldiers had been destroyed, one of the remaining two was without a sword (or sword arm), and he couldn't summon more yet. While he didn't know everything her Bankai could do, it was clear that it could heal Yachiru. Or perhaps, the act of releasing it did so but it couldn't heal her past that? Either way, he wasn't keen on letting her pull any more tricks out of her hat.
Ichigo and his golems rushed forward, all three overlapping, causing their shields to perfectly cover their bodies as a pseudo-shield wall. The one-armed golem moved to strike Yachiru with its shield while Ichigo and the remaining armor attacked from either side. To their shock, she didn't bother blocking or evading any of the three attacks. As a heavy slab of steel slammed into her face, one sword severed her left arm while the other cut deep into her side! Something solid slipped out of the hole in her stomach but Ichigo had no time to notice as Yachiru's Zanpakutō sliced through both his damaged shield and his chest plate! He hissed in pain at the steel carving into his flesh even as the top portion of his shield fell off. But rather than back off, Ichigo slammed his helmeted forehead into the ravenette's face.
Before he could pull his head back, Yachiru grabbed his helmet with her left hand and used it to hold him in place as she impaled his left shoulder! Letting go of his helmet, she punched him in the diaphragm hard enough to knock Ichigo backwards off her blade and rapidly sliced his remaining one and a half soldiers into pieces of scrap metal. To Ichigo's shock, his chestplate was noticeably crumbled where he'd been struck!
Still, with all his golems destroyed, he was able to use Yūrei no Heishi again. He quickly did so then used Yūrei no Ken to summon a pair of Eien-ō Tenmai's swords. Any more would take too much focus to control. Focus he would need to defeat this woman. Once more, the six leapt upon Yachiru, slicing, thrusting, and hacking in an attempt to kill her! All the while, they took greater care to guard each other, lest she take them apart once more. But it was all for naught. The first Kenpachi fought like a demon, parrying, dodging, and deflecting attack after attack. What attacks got through were ignored even as the injuries they caused healed before Ichigo's eyes. When Ichigo managed to cut through her thigh, Yachiru leapt through the air in a graceful backflip. And when she landed over a dozen meters away, her leg was fully restored, albeit bare.
To the woman's surprise, Ichigo cast aside his shield, the object dissipating and being absorbed into his armor, to wield his sword two-handed. They charged one another, meeting in the middle with a clash that left the area around them completely free of blood, only for the crimson liquid to come rushing back in. The pool acted like a polished mirror, perfectly reflecting their movements but for the ripples caused by their steps. The pair broke their blade lock and attacked each other once more. Mighty slash after piercing thrust after forceful hew, their swords danced!
Ichigo's soldiers closed to aid, only to be almost negligently rendered to countless cross sections. His spectral swords nailed her feet to the ground long enough for Ichigo to slash her from shoulder to hip, but even that healed as she ripped her feet from the blades and shattered the swords. The teen's follow-up was deflected wide, sending his Zanpakutō far out of position to react when his opponent slashed at his helmet. Though he dodged to the side, a significant chunk of his helmet was sheared off. When they finally broke away from each other for a moment, the pair paused briefly to take in their forms. Yachiru was covered in blood as though she had bathed in it and her Shihakusho was barely holding on with the number of holes in it, not to mention the missing leg and sleeve, but her body was unmarred. In contrast, Ichigo's body was riddled with injuries great and minor. Irritably, he ripped off his damaged helm, reducing his armor to only his legs and right arm.
Panting for breath, the Substitute called, "I'm not… sure… if you're amazing… or terrifying." Seeing Yachiru wasn't attacking him yet, Ichigo took a deep breath before continuing, "But clearly, my armor's not doing me any good. And I'm not gonna get through that bullshit healing like this. Guess it was arrogant of me to think I wouldn't need to do this." Changing his stance, Ichigo's uncovered hand left the handle of his Zanpakutō to grip the blade. His entire form glowed as the sword transformed, lengthening while the blade grew round. Ichigo's armor dispersed and flowed into the weapon. When the light faded, he was left holding a simple yet beautiful spear. The polished steel shaft was braided with blue cloth, the ends of which were flowing freely near the base of the forty-centimeter blade which held a golden core. "Eikō no Yari."
Without further warning, Ichigo thrust his spear forward, launching a Tenka-Ichiken as a beam of Reiryoku. Even as Yachiru dodged, Ichigo turned his thrust into a slash. Despite not firing another Tenka-Ichiken, the air pressure from his attack nonetheless sliced open her belly! '?! That attack shouldn't have had the speed to cut from such a distance.' She closed the distance just as another thrust, again from too far away to connect, destroyed her upper right arm and shoulder, leaving behind a perfectly smooth curve as though someone had simply scooped away part of her body. Catching Minazuki with her offhand before it could hit the ground, Yachiru reached Ichigo before he could launch another attack. Her stab was parried by his spear, but in doing so, he confirmed her suspicions.
Yachiru kicked up one of her discarded daggers, catching it in her regrown arm before attacking him with both weapons at once. Though he tried his best, Ichigo nonetheless was forced to allow some attacks through so he could stop the more dangerous ones. "As I thought," Yachiru stated casually, as though they weren't doing their best to murder each other, "Your Eikō no Yari enhances your offense by sacrificing your defense. That was already a mistake given your inexperience. But it's compounded by your unfamiliarity with using a spear. You shouldn't have used this technique."
With a growl of both anger and frustration, Ichigo channeled even more of his Reiatsu through Eien-ō Tenmai and swung the butt of his spear up to slam into her face, knocking her to the side. Even as she rose, spitting out several teeth as new ones formed, he spun his Zanpakutō overhead, charging it with power the whole time. He swung his Bankai downwards towards her with a shout of, "TENKA-ICHIKEN!" The resulting blast engulfed Sōkyoku Hill and continued past it for several kilometers until it slammed into the barrier around the Seireitei! When the light faded and the smoke cleared, the entirety of the overhanging cliff was outright gone!
Ichigo panted heavily, his injuries and his exhaustion were taking their toll. But at least, it was ov- Shing! Ichigo heard the sound before he felt it. The following thud only confirmed what his body was slow to tell him: His right arm was gone! The teen screamed at the agony, only for his voice to cut out as a blade emerged from his chest, right between his clavicles! As his breath rasped through the holes in his trachea, the sword was pulled from his body. A kick to the back sent him collapsing into the pool of blood beneath his feet, his Zanpakutō falling from his remaining hand. "I warned you, Kurosaki-kun. You shouldn't have used that technique," Yachiru lectured him as she stared down at his weakening form, "You had talent, yes. Power too. But you were green. You were never going to kill me like that. A pity. For what it's worth, you were the most entertainment I've had in centuries." When he didn't rise or even retort as his Reiatsu faded, Yachiru turned and walked away. It truly was a shame. Another century or two of growth and he might have been her equal in combat ability, if not skill. 'Regardless, duty before pleasure. Hopefully, Isane-chan and the others have safely confronted Captain Aizen. Once he's dealt with, we can-'
What they could do would remain unanswered as a monstrous Reiatsu flooded the area. A dark, sinister purple, it positively bled maleficence and murderous intent. It was akin to the depths of the ocean: dark, suffocating, and filled with horrors. From behind the ravenette, Ichigo's body rose to its feet once more, his head tilted downward. His injuries gradually sealed up, including the hole in his trachea, as he turned towards his would-be killer. Yachiru turned back towards the Substitute, her Bankai still in hand. This. This was definitely new. The first Kenpachi had seen many, many things over the centuries, but even she had never seen something quite like this before. "Who- no, what are you?" She asked the thing that had been Kurosaki Ichigo.
From his right shoulder formed a skeletal arm made of purple Reiryoku and Eikō no Yari flew into his hands once more. As he pointed the spear towards her, something white became visible as it formed on his face. Raising his head, Ichigo revealed golden eyes with black sclera as a striped mask like a horned skull formed on his face. Only then did he answer, "An interesting question with a complicated answer. But I don't answer to dead women!"
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AN: Bet yall didn't expect Ichigo to have to fight the Heal Mama. Especially not for him to activate her Murder Milf Mode.
In canon, Inemuri doesn't have a number so I just assigned it one of the missing ones.
Ichigo's mask is that of his Vasto Lorde/Resurreccion form because it's (to quote Peacemaker) dope as fuck.
Minor note, Sado, Uryū, and Orihime aren't aware that Yoruichi is a woman yet.
Ichigo's Bankai, Eien-ō Tenmai (Divine Mandate of the Eternal King), has officially been unveiled.
Eikō no Yari (Spear of Glory): Ichigo loses his armor and shield while his sword transforms into a spear, sacrificing his defense for raw offensive power.
Yūrei no Ken becomes Yūrei no Heishi (Ghost Swords - Ghost Soldiers). Unlike Yūrei no Ken, this summons armored golems which wield Eien-ō Tenmai and act independently of the user without guidance. However, Ichigo can only summon five of them at once. He can still summon just copies of his sword/spear to fight, but they're less powerful than the golems and require him to control their movements with his mind.
So in canon, we never really learn what Unohana's Bankai did exactly, just that it read the same while having a different meaning (Flesh-Drops' Gorge versus All Things' End). I know some believe it's an incredibly powerful acid due to that page where both appear to be partially skeletal, but since it was only for a single page, I felt that was a visual metaphor. Here, Unohana's Bankai works rather like a tamer version of Alucard's regeneration from Hellsing Ultimate. She can use the blood of those she's killed in order to heal herself. There is a relatively minor offensive boost but the healing is the main power. Granted, healing herself does cost blood but this is a woman whose subordinate saw a pile of a couple hundred bodies and assumed his captain got bored. She has a LOT of blood to work with.
For those curious about how far along Tatsuki's transformation is, she's pretty much at Kaidō's hybrid form, albeit in different colors and with different horns.
Finally, Next Time on "Vow of the King"! Sometimes you dom the milf, sometimes the milf doms you. Meanwhile, Isane sticks something long and hard deep inside Toshiro's hole.